Romanian Govt Considers Social Health Insurance Contributions From Pensioners

According to people close to the matter, the President suggested this, reminding the coalition that he would have preferred taxing pensions by 16% to increasing the VAT, as it would have reduced the „huge” social security budget deficit.

The consensus was to require pensioners receiving more than 750 lei (EUR1=RON4.3110) per month to pay 5.5% as a contribution to the social health insurance system. Most pensions in Romania amount to less than RON1000. According to coalition specialists, this measure could cover EUR1.4 billion of the system’s EUR2.1 billion deficit.